New Printing Conditions for ISO 12647-2

MediaStandard Print 2016 – Technical Guidelines for Data, Proof and Production Run Printing

The MediaStandard Print 2016 – Technical Guidelines for Data, Proof and Production Run Printing is now available, providing an English language update to the 2006 publication. The MediaStandard Print facilitates collaboration between clients, media and prepress service providers, as well as printing companies, on the basis of international standards, including the ISO 12647 series. The current edition is the first English language directive to describe the continuous application of the new standards printing conditions for offset printing, taking into account the effect of optical brighteners, and which has been binding the CIEDE2000 colour spacing formula in digital test printing since 2016.

On September 30th 2013, the project partners German Printing and Media Industries Federation (bvdm), European Colour Initiative (ECI) and Fogra presented the successful result of their common, comprehensive project at Stuttgart Media University. The project is new Fogra characterisation data sets, ECI offset profiles and “ECI/bvdm Gray Control” print control strips for offset printing in accordance with the international print process standard ISO 12647-2:2013:

With the release of the new printing conditions the international application of offset standard ISO 12647-2 throughout the industry is successfully continued and improved. Thus, the activities of European Experts in the Printing Standard Network (PSN) – an initiative of Intergraf – are supported. The new tools and further information are available for immediate download on the websites of ECI (www.eci.org), Fogra (www.fogra.de), German Printing and Media Industries Federation (www.bvdm-online.de).

Why new Fogra Characterisation Data Sets and ECI Profiles?

The revision of the international offset printing standard ISO 12647-2 with changed process aim values for ink solids and tone value increase curves was starting point, but not the only reason for bvdm, ECI and Fogra to develop new tools. Improvements for dealing with optically brightened paper was in the focus of all efforts: the new characterization data sets and profiles are important prerequisites for a metered and visual match of proof and production printing. As advantage for the process control of printing on wood-free uncoated white paper with its typical high-amount of optical brighteners, the new characterisation data set “FOGRA52” contains practice-oriented CIELAB values for the ink solids and the paper tone. It is planned to later add characterisation data that reflect standardized printing on OBA poor uncoated paper (ISO 12647-2:2013 PC5) and yellowish book printing substrates.

Additional Technical Prerequisites for the Implementation of the new Offset Printing Standard

The new printing conditions – and further technical prerequisites for their successful implementation – explained at the kick-off meeting, at the Print Media University in Stuttgart on September 30th. The amount of ultraviolet radiation in the lighting (UV content) plays an important role in conjunction with optically brightened papers. A good visual match of proof and production printing requires the judgement under D50 norm light according to the ISO 3664:2009 standard and the use of an optically brightened proof substrate.

The use of a new colour measurement device supporting the measurement mode M1 (lighting simulates D50 with UV content) is a must for the metered quality control of proof and production printing. For the process control of the production printing, it is not necessary to replace existing colour measurement equipment (measurement mode 0, incandescent lighting without defined UV content).